1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a thermal magnetic engine and a system thereof. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a thermal magnetic engine with a fin structure.
2. Description of Related Art
Since the oil crisis as well as the nuclear disaster happened from time to time, people start to find out sustainable and low-pollution alternative energy sources. Common alternative energy sources include biomass (bio-fuels), geothermal, solar cell, wind power, tides, ocean temperature difference power generation . . . , and so on. However, people still hope for finding out a renewable energy source.
Among them, utilizing a temperature difference (or temperature gradient) to generate electrical energy or mechanical energy is regarded as one of the widely discussed renewable energy implementation, which can be realized according to a temperature difference between two kinds of ocean water, between two working fluids or between a working fluid and an ambient temperature, so as to generate or convert the temperature difference into energy.
The operational theory of the thermal magnetic engine is based primarily on material characteristics of a working material. The permeability of the working material is varied as the ambient temperature changes. Especially, the permeability of the working material is varied dramatically in a certain temperature internal. This certain temperature internal or value is called the Curie temperature (Tc). The permeability of a first order material is varied even more significantly than the permeability of a second order material under the similar conditions around the Curie temperature. Furthermore, the thermal magnetic engine (also called the Curie engine) is a device based on the material characteristics of permeability changes around the Curie temperature, so as to convert the ambient heat into mechanical energy or other energy (e.g., electricity).
Magnetic heat engine applies an external magnetic filed on a working ring made of the working material. A heat source and/or a cold source are provided to form a temperature gradient (the range of the temperature gradient is better to cover the Curie temperature) on the working material under the magnetic field, so as to realize different permeability on the working material. Different permeability results in an uneven distribution of the magnetic field on the working ring, such that a magnetic torque is induced under the magnetic field to cause the rotation of the working ring. In this example, the working ring can be pivotally connected on a fixed frame. The kinetic energy within the rotation of the working ring can be exported via a specific transmission device. Accordingly, the temperature difference can be converted into a mechanical energy. Furthermore, the mechanical energy can be further converted into electricity by connecting the specific transmission device with a device like electronic comb.
In general, a heat/cold source of the thermal magnetic engine is usually a working fluid (such as ocean water, river water, spring water, tap water . . . , etc) bringing the hot/cold temperature onto a specific region (e.g., a rotatable portion including the working material) of thermal magnetic engine. The working fluid can be driven by a pump, gravity or some other ways to the thermal magnetic engine for thermal exchanging with the working material of the thermal magnetic engine. However, only temperature difference between working fluids is utilized, and the kinetic energy or potential energy of the working fluid flowing through the thermal magnetic engine is ignored in aforesaid examples. Therefore, overall efficiency of energy conversion is reduced on a traditional thermal magnetic engine.